Chapter 7 Mental Health

Characteristics of good Mental/Emotional Health Mental/Emotional Health is the ability to accept yourself and other, adapt to and manage emotions, and deal with the demands and challenges you meet in life Characteristics…. Positive Self-Esteem Sense of Belonging Sense of Purpose Positive Outlook Autonomy (able to function by relying on yourself)

Signs of Good Mental Health in Teens: Realistic about strengths/weaknesses and put their talents to use Responsible for their own behavior Make good choices about drugs/alcohol/tobacco/sex/friends Open-minded/flexible Fun-loving and able to relax Respect themselves and others Develops good relationships Express their emotions in ways that do not hurt themselves or others View change as an opportunity/challenge

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need

Meeting Your Needs YOUR choices affect your mental and emotional health! Practicing abstinence and finding healthful ways to meet your emotional needs are strategies to avoid negatively affecting your mental and emotional health

Your Personality 1. HEREDITY SOME personality traits are inherited from your parents --Intellect, Behavior, Temperament, Emotional tendencies 2. ENVIRONMENT SOME behaviors are learned by people & things around you --Family/Friends/peers, neighborhood, school, activities that you participate in. --People naturally engage in modeling, which is observing and learning from behaviors of those around you….Have Good Role Models in your life!! 3. BEHAVIOR This is the thing that YOU have the most control over!!

Develop a Positive Identity Your identity includes your: Interests Likes and dislikes Talents and abilities Values and beliefs Goals

Your Assets Support of those around you Feeling Empowered Having boundaries and expectations Using time constructively A commitment to learning Positive values Social competencies (functioning well with all types of people and situations) Positive Identity

Ways to Build a Healthy Identity Know your strengths and weaknesses Have positive values and actually live by those values Give your life purpose by making goals and following through with them Form relationships with people who enable you to express yourself, share your beliefs/feelings. The people closest to you should accept you for the person you are. Contribute to your community Avoid risky behaviors If you make a mistake…forgive yourself and LEARN from it!

Self-Esteem Healthy identity = Increased Self- Esteem Think realistically--It is easy to fall into a pattern of seeing events as worse than they really are Be able to use constructive criticism as a way to improve yourself rather than a blow to your self-esteem Analyze your self-talk…are you putting yourself down or lifting yourself up?

Emotions

Understanding Emotions Emotions are signals that tell your mind and body how to react Joy can release brain chemicals that cause warmth and a sense of well being Fear can trigger physical changes to heart, sweating, muscles….fight or flight response!

Identifying Your Emotions FYI--Chemicals in your body called hormones are secreted by your glands and regulate activities of different body cells….they can also affect your emotional state Happiness Sadness Love Empathy Fear Guilt Anger Hostility—the intentional use of unfriendly or offensive behavior

Managing Emotions Ask yourself: What am I REALLY reacting to? Is my reaction more intense than the situation calls for? Wait to take actions on strong feelings until you have had time to think through all angles and consequences Use positive feelings to inspire yourself Engage in physical activity/hobbies or talk to someone supportive to help relieve negative feelings If a negative feeling persists, seek help from a trusted parent, adult, or health care professional

Dealing With Difficult Emotions Some emotions can seem overwhelming…try these tips to get you through: Analyze the situation Write in a private journal Take slow deep breaths Play music Color!! Work out

More Ways to Deal with Tough Emotions… Fear—Identify what scares you, analyze the situation, talk about it to someone, research it to arm yourself with facts, get help if the fear is unable to be controlled Guilt—admit mistakes and make amends, learn from your experiences, discuss with family and friends, view the situation realistically Anger—find the underlying source, deal with it in a non-confrontational, calm, logical manner…if you cannot do anything about the source of your anger, find ways to begin coping with your feelings by participating in activities that relax you.

Defense Mechanisms… Not a great way to deal with emotions Defense Mechanisms are mental processes that protect individuals from strong or stressful emotions

More Defense Mechanisms Suppression Conscious, intentional pushing of unpleasantness from one’s mind Rationalization Making excuses to explain a situation or behavior, rather than directly taking responsibility for it. Compensation Making up for weaknesses and mistakes through gift-giving, hard work or extreme efforts Idealization Seeing someone else as perfect, ideal, or more worthy than everyone else